BorgBackup vs ElkarBackup
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | BorgBackup | ElkarBackup |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 94 · Excellent | 66 · Good |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | BSD-3-Clause | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 13,762 | ★ 416 |
| First released | 2015 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Carbonite, Backblaze | Carbonite |
What are BorgBackup and ElkarBackup?
BorgBackup
BorgBackup is a deduplicating backup program with compression and authenticated encryption for efficient, secure archives. It targets technical users backing up to local or remote storage. It is deployed as a binary or package.
- Deduplication and compression
- Authenticated encryption
- Append-only repos for ransomware safety
- Efficient remote backups over SSH
ElkarBackup
ElkarBackup is an open-source backup solution with a web interface, built on rsync and rsnapshot for incremental file backups. It targets administrators wanting GUI-managed network backups. It is deployed via Docker.
- Web UI for rsync backups
- Incremental snapshots
- Scheduling and scripts
- Email reports
BorgBackup vs ElkarBackup: key differences
BorgBackup is written in Python, while ElkarBackup is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — BSD-3-Clause for BorgBackup versus GPL-3.0 for ElkarBackup. BorgBackup is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for ElkarBackup. BorgBackup has the considerably larger community, at 13,762 GitHub stars versus 416. ElkarBackup lists first-class Docker deployment; BorgBackup does not.
Why pick each one
Choose BorgBackup if…
- Excellent space efficiency
- Strong security
- Battle-tested
Watch out for
- Command-line oriented
- Repo not directly mountable everywhere
Choose ElkarBackup if…
- GUI for rsync backups
- Good scheduling
- Multi-host
Watch out for
- Dated interface
- Slower development
Frequently asked questions
Is BorgBackup or ElkarBackup better?
Neither is universally better. BorgBackup has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are BorgBackup and ElkarBackup free and open-source?
Yes. BorgBackup is licensed under BSD-3-Clause and ElkarBackup under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run BorgBackup and ElkarBackup with Docker?
BorgBackup: check the project docs for container support. ElkarBackup: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, BorgBackup or ElkarBackup?
BorgBackup has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for ElkarBackup. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.